UPDATE 1-Mesa Air wins injunction in legal fight with Delta

(Adds quotes from Delta, Mesa CEO, background)

NEW YORK May 29 (Reuters) - Mesa Air Group Inc MESA.O said on Thursday it won a preliminary injunction in federal court in Atlanta preventing Delta Air Lines (DAL.N) from terminating a contract with Mesa's subsidiary, Freedom Air.

Mesa had said it might be forced to file for bankruptcy protection if it lost its legal fight with Delta and Mesa's shares jumped about 50 percent to 75 cents in afternoon trading.

Mesa, which provides regional flights for major airlines, has been in dispute with Delta since March, when Delta told Mesa it planned to terminate their partnership, accusing Mesa of failing to complete a specified number of flights.

Mesa denied that allegation and in April sued Delta, saying the airline had breached their agreement.

"We are hopeful this issue can be fully resolved soon," said Mesa Air Chief Executive Jonathan Ornstein in a statement on Thursday.

A spokeswoman for Delta said: "We are disappointed in the judge's ruling -- we intend to appeal his ruling."

Delta shares were trading about 8 percent higher at $6.11 (Reporting by Mark McSherry, editing by Maureen Bavdek and Dave Zimmerman)